In the retail merchandising of various products it is oftentimes desirable to have the products displayed on shelves, racks or rods whereby the customer may closely inspect, feel and select the individual products. In supermarkets, hardware stores, drugstores and department stores, it is a common practice for the customer to serve himself or herself and carry or transport by cart the selected products to a checkout counter or cashier. Frequently, at such locations there may be numerous customers waiting in line to be served. Thus, various items such as magazines, candy, batteries, various sundry articles and special sale items are commonly displayed in close proximity to the checkout counter, or cashier, resulting in routine or impulse purchases by the waiting customers. It is important that such items be displayed in an attractive, stable manner and in such a way that the selected items be conveniently and readily removed from the display without disturbing other items supported by the display. In addition to being located in proximity to the checkout counter or cashier, special sale or feature items are oftentimes displayed in or proximate the aisles where the customers are accustomed to walk or stroll while shopping.
The type, size or shape of the products or articles displayed may vary over a wide range and the location of the display may be changed frequently. Where the display includes shelves which are vertically spaced, it is frequently necessary to change the vertical spacing of selected shelves to better accommodate particular products.
Heretofore, the changing of such selected shelves has been an awkward and frustrating manipulation, sometimes requiring an inordinate amount of manual labor. To disengage the selected shelves from a vertical support (e.g. wall bracket or vertical post-like members), oftentimes required that a selected shelf be tilted upwardly a substantial amount relative to the bracket or post-like member to effect the desired disengagement from the support members. The same manual manipulation, but in reverse, was required to effect the desired engagement. Thus, because of the required tilting of the selected shelf, interference from the adjoining shelves frequently occurred. Furthermore, in some instances, adjusting such shelves required the utilization of special tools and the cooperative effort of one or more additional persons. Prior display stand assembly often embodied an inordinate number of components some of which were bulky, heavy and unattractive and susceptible to being lost or mislaid.